Nature Based Solutions (NbS) are strategies that protect, manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems to address societal challenges effectively and adaptively while providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits. In recent news, India’s first National Coalition platform dedicated to Urban NbS was launched at the 11th World Urban Forum in Poland. The platform was initiated by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) Climate Centre for Cities (NIUA C-Cube), World Resources Institute India (WRI India), and their partners.
The World Urban Forum (WUF), established in 2001 by the United Nations, is the leading global conference on sustainable urbanization. It examines the rapid urbanization process and its impact on communities, cities, economies, climate change, and policies.
NIUA’s Role in Urban Development
The NIUA takes a proactive role in urban development and management, with a focus on research, knowledge management, policy advocacy, and capacity building. The objective is to develop sustainable, inclusive, and productive urban ecosystems across the country.
National Coalition Platform for NbS: Key Highlights
The India Forum for Nature-based Solutions aims to build a collective of NbS entrepreneurs, government entities, and like-minded organizations. The goal is to scale up urban nature-based solutions by defining a shared language and communicating benefits that inform actions at the local level, driving investment, strengthening delivery mechanisms through multi-stakeholder coordination, and mainstreaming urban ecosystem-based services and nature-based solutions in India.
Significance of Nature Based Solutions
Nature-Based Solutions have emerged as cost-effective and sustainable methods to combat climate change and the challenges it poses such as heat, urban flooding, air and water pollution, and storm surges. Besides mitigating climate change, NbS also contributes to building resilience among underserved and vulnerable urban communities most affected by climate change-induced disasters.
Understanding Local-led Adaptation
Local-led adaptation refers to the actions taken by local communities and governments in making informed decisions to combat climate change. Indigenous solutions, often generated from nature, characterize local-led adaptation. As the most vulnerable populations are typically more dependent on natural resources, it is expected that their coping strategies will likely stem from the same source.
Nature Based Solutions: Types and Potential
Three types of Nature Based Solutions exist based on the level of intervention in ecosystems. The first involves minimal or no intervention in ecosystems – such as protecting mangroves in coastal areas. The second type includes management approaches that develop sustainable and multifunctional ecosystems and landscapes. Lastly, extensive management of ecosystems or even the creation of new ones falls under the third category, which is strongly linked to objectives like restoring heavily degraded or polluted areas and greening cities.
Providing buffers against flood waters, conserving mangrove forests, protecting salt marshes, and restoring forest habitats are all examples of NbS already in operation globally.
The Recognition of NbS Globally and in India
The United Nations has promoted NbS as the theme for World Water Day 2018 and highlighted it as an effective method to combat climate change in the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit. The European Union also supports a multi-stakeholder dialogue platform to promote the co-design, testing, and deployment of improved and innovative NBS.
India has launched its first National Coalition platform for Urban nature-based solutions (NbS) under the Cities4Forests initiative. Cities4Forests works closely with cities around the world to foster a connection with forests, emphasizing the importance of wetlands and their multiple benefits to combat climate change and protect biodiversity within cities.
